How to Shape Fingernails for Guitar Playing

If you are a guitar player, you know that shaping your fingernails can help you to get a good tone and volume. The following steps will show you how to shape your fingernails to enhance your guitar playing.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Nail clipper
• Nail file

Rounded Fingernails

1. Trim your fingernails with a nail clipper until they are all relatively the same size.
2. File your fingernails to make them round, following the natural curve of your fingers.
3. Look at your hand with the palm facing toward you. Make sure your fingernails are about a 1/16 inch above your finger tips.

Angled Fingernails

4. Trim your fingernails until they are all relatively the same size; about 1/16 inch above your finger tips.
5. File your fingernail so that it is at a slight angle with the shorter part of the fingernail that comes in contact with the guitar string.
6. Experiment between the 2 shapes, rounded and angled, to see which one works best for you. The angled shape is considered the more "professional" shape for serious guitar players. This shape allows the flesh to come in contact with the strings, which lends to a nice warm tone, while getting a fine grip on the strings.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep your nails trimmed to the lengths described in this article. Longer nails can catch on the strings; shorter nails can cause you to occasionally miss a string while playing.
• Fingernails that are uneven or unfilled can catch on the string, causing an unpleasant clanging note, or a scratchy, uneven sound.